Breaking Difficult Passages Into Small Piano Drills

One of the reasons a difficult passage in piano music seems so difficult is because there are so many motions involved. There are different fingers to coordinate, perhaps a tricky rhythm, and your hand must move from one part of the keyboard to another without losing its orientation. Rather than trying to play the whole passage over and over again, break the passage down into a few notes and practice only those. Practicing a few notes patiently will help you master a difficult passage more than practicing the whole passage repeatedly.

Look for the point in the passage where your hands start to get hung up. Perhaps it is a fast transition from one note to another, perhaps you must jump to a different part of the keyboard, or perhaps there is a tricky rhythm. Practice just those notes and forget about the rest of the passage for now. Practice them slowly and pay attention to how each of your fingers strikes its note. If the motion feels awkward, try using a different finger or adjust the position of your hand so that the motion feels more natural. This will help your fingers memorize a small motion instead of a whole passage.

One pitfall you might encounter while practicing a small passage is practicing the notes without paying attention to rhythm or tone. Your fingers may be hitting the right keys, but the rhythm may not be even or the tone may be forced. If this happens, slow down even further and try to feel a steady beat in the background of your practicing. Try to allow your fingers to drop onto the keys rather than forcing them down. If you feel tension in your wrist or forearm, stop for a moment, loosen up your hand, and try again with a lighter touch.

You may be surprised at how quickly you can improve a difficult passage if you practice it in a small group. Begin with a few minutes of practicing something easy to loosen up your fingers. Then practice your difficult passage. Repeat the same small group several times at a slow tempo until it starts to feel comfortable. Then add a note or two to the passage to start building it back up. This will allow your brain and fingers to master the passage in small chunks rather than facing the passage in all its complexity at the outset.

As you repeat this process on different parts of a difficult passage, eventually the whole passage will become easy. Each finger will know where to go and you will no longer feel disoriented on the keyboard when you come to a passage. Your music will start to flow again because you will have mastered the difficult parts one small group at a time.